Archive for May, 2010

Just to let you know that the latest issue (Volume 5, Number 2) of Looking Up, my 40-page international autism newsletter (www.lookingupautism.org), is out now.

Contents of this latest edition include:

– The death of Kim Peek, the ‘real Rain Man’ – a profile of this extraordinary man and a tribute from his close friend, Dr Darold Treffert, the world’s leading expert on autistic savants and an adviser on the 1988 movie, Rain Man
– The full story of why The Lancet decided to retract Andrew Wakefield’s 1998 MMR paper
– Is it possible to recover from autism? Dr Deborah Fein’s latest study suggests it is – and so does Raun Kaufman (see his comments to Looking Up in this issue)
– Donna Williams: ‘Why my feet were my eyes’
– Gary McKinnon update: Extradition to the US put on hold. Comments from the psychiatrist, Professor Jeremy Turk, whose medical report on McKinnon influenced the British government’s decision
– UK Autism Act is given Royal Assent
– As latest study puts autism prevalence at 1 per cent, ten ‘clusters’ are identified in California
– Autistic student stamps his mark on the postal service
– The bizarre case of Molly, the ‘autistic’ dog in Italy. Comments from Dr Lorna Wing
– Running the toughest foot race on Earth – for autism
– Why hundreds of butterflies were released in a park in El Salvador
– New autism association for Algeria
– Jenny McCarthy splits from Jim Carrey, her ‘autism whisperer’
EDUCATION: Autistic children ‘are being unfairly excluded from schools’ – Comments from the study’s lead author, Professor David Skuse
AUTISM IN ASIA: Ridicule in the Philippines, Tales of tears and rewards in Indonesia and Merry Barua on why India’s ‘new’ screening tool for autism is not new at all
AUTISM AND THE ARTS: Hugh Dancy on how he prepared for the role of a man with Asperger’s syndrome in the film, Adam

Looking Up, which I founded in 1998, publishes the very latest research, news and vews from the world of autism. Further details, as well as selected free articles, can be found on the website at: www.lookingupautism.org

By popular request, a 16-page PDF edition of Looking Up is now available, starting with Volume 5, Number 1. The PDF edition consists of selected articles from the full 40-page print edition.